Big Ten Recruiting Class Rankings

This was a regular feature at my old site, and it will make occasional appearances here, though not nearly with the frequency of before. The nitty gritty details are after the jump, but the overview is here for your perusal:

Big Ten Recruiting Class Rankings 2009

Rank

Team

Commits

Rivals Avg.

Scout Avg.

ESPN Avg.

1

Penn State

20

5.79

3.90

77.15

2

Notre Dame

17

5.76

3.59

78.59

3

Ohio State

13

5.72

3.69

78.92

4

Michigan

19

5.62

3.21

77.53

5

Michigan State

14

5.64

3.43

77.71

6

Illinois

9

5.67

3.33

76.56

7

Wisconsin

17

5.14

2.76

71.53

8

Iowa

19

5.64

2.42

68.47

9

Minnesota

21

5.49

2.43

74.00

10

Northwestern

12

5.58

2.67

70.42

11

Indiana

21

5.39

2.28

62.96

12

Purdue

15

5.37

2.27

70.27

Rivals numbers are "RR Rankings," with unrated guys getting q 5.0. Scout numbers are simply stars, with 1* for unrated guys, ESPN's numbers are their arbitrary grades, with unrated players deemed worthy of 40 points. Full data after the jump.

The rankings are sorted first by Rivals RR Rankings, because I think Rivals is generally the best at rating prospects. Within the Rivals numbers, prospects are sorted by Scout (stars) and ESPN (grade) rankings, in that order.

#1 Penn State, 20 Commits

Name

Position

Rivals

Scout

ESPN

Khairi Fortt

LB

6.0

4

81

Paul Jones

QB

5.9

5

78

Dominique Easley

DE

5.9

4

83

Robert Bolden

QB

5.9

4

81

Silas Redd

RB

5.9

4

79

Adrian Coxson

WR

5.8

5

81

Evan Hailes

DT

5.8

4

81

Dakota Royer

DE

5.8

4

81

Miles Dieffenbach

OL

5.8

4

80

CJ Olaniyan

DE

5.8

4

80

Kyle Baublitz

TE

5.8

4

79

Mike Hull

LB

5.8

4

77

Thomas Ricketts

OL

5.8

4

77

Zach Zwinak

FB

5.8

4

77

Kevin Haplea

TE

5.7

4

78

Daquan Jones

OL

5.7

4

77

Alex Kenney

WR

5.7

3

80

Luke Graham

OL

5.7

3

76

Levi Norwood

WR

5.5

3

77

Khamrone Kolb

OL

5.5

3

77

The Nittany Lions currently lead the conference in quality of recruits, and almost have the most commitments as well.

#2 Notre Dame, 15 Commits

Name

Position

Rivals

Scout

ESPN

Chris Martin

DE

6.1

5

80

Tai-ler Jones

WR

5.8

4

81

Andrew Hendrix

QB

5.8

4

80

Blake Lueders

DE

5.8

4

80

Giovanni Bernard

RB

5.8

4

79

Kendall Moore

LB

5.8

3

77

Cameron Roberson

RB

5.8

3

77

Prince Shembo

LB

5.8

3

78

Alex Welch

TE

5.8

4

79

Chris Badger

S

5.7

4

79

Spencer Boyd

CB

5.7

3

79

Bennett Jackson

WR

5.7

3

77

Tommy Rees

QB

5.7

3

78

Lo Wood

CB

5.7

3

78

Christian Lombard

OL

5.6

4

79

Daniel Smith

WR

5.6

4

78

Justin Utupo

DT

5.6

3

77

Yes, I'm aware that Notre Dame isn't actually in the Big Ten Conference. They're still a regional team that Michigan plays every year. Their class has been boosted by some top commits lately.

#3 Ohio State, 13 Commits

Name

Position

Rivals

Scout

ESPN

Andrew Norwell

OL

5.9

5

81

Roderick Smith

RB

5.9

4

82

Corey Brown

ATH

5.9

4

80

James Louis

WR

5.8

4

81

Jamel Turner

DE

5.8

4

79

Tyrone Williams

WR

5.8

4

79

JT Moore

DE

5.8

4

78

Taylor Graham

QB

5.8

3

78

Darryl Baldwin

DE

5.7

3

81

David Durham

LB

5.6

3

79

Chad Hagan

S

5.5

3

75

Scott McVey

LB

5.5

4

77

Drew Basil

K

5.4

3

76

Ohio State has very few commitments, but the guys that they do have at this point are well-regarded.

#4 Michigan, 19 Commits

Name

Position

Rivals

Scout

ESPN

Devin Gardner

QB

5.9

5

81

Marvin Robinson

LB

5.8

4

79

Jerald Robinson

WR

5.8

4

77

Ken Wilkins

DE

5.8

3

77

Austin White

RB

5.7

4

77

Christian Pace

OL

5.7

3

79

Ricardo Miller

WR

5.7

4

80

Jordan Paskorz

DE

5.6

3

78

Tony Drake

RB

5.6

3

77

Drew Dileo

ATH

5.6

3

75

Cornelius Jones

QB

5.6

2

77

Jeremy Jackson

WR

5.5

3

79

Will Hagerup

P

5.5

3

79

Terrence Talbott

CB

5.5

3

78

Stephen Hopkins

RB

5.5

3

77

Antonio Kinard

LB

5.5

3

77

Terry Talbott

DT

5.5

3

75

Courtney Avery

CB

5.5

3

73

DJ Williamson

WR

5.5

2

78

Michigan's class has been stagnant for quite some time, and probably won't change until after the Ohio State game at the end of November. I think a couple guys (Terry Talbott most of all, perhaps) are underrated, though other schools could probably say the same about some of their guys.

#5 Michigan State, 14 Commits

Name

Position

Rivals

Scout

ESPN

William Gholston

DE

5.9

5

83

Joe Boisture

QB

5.8

4

77

Max Bullough

LB

5.8

4

79

Isaiah Lewis

CB

5.8

4

77

Mylan Hicks

CB

5.7

4

78

Keith Mumphery

WR

5.7

3

78

Kurtis Drummond

S

5.7

3

77

Nick Hill

RB

5.7

3

75

Taylor Calero

DE

5.5

3

76

Travis Jackson

OL

5.5

3

77

Tony Lippett

ATH

5.5

3

78

Marcus Rush

DE

5.5

3

78

Mike Sadler

K

5.5

3

79

Michael Dennis

OL

5.4

3

76

The Spartans look for staying power near the top of the conference by recruiting well.

#6 Illinois, 9 Commits

Name

Position

Rivals

Scout

ESPN

CJ Fiedorowicz

TE

5.9

4

81

Corey Cooper

S

5.8

4

79

Chandler Whitmer

QB

5.7

4

78

Dexter McDonald

S

5.7

3

79

Daniel Easterly

ATH

5.6

3

78

Mark Wilson

LB

5.6

3

76

Shawn Afryl

OL

5.6

3

70

Michael Heitz

OL

5.6

3

NR

Andy Gallik

OL

5.5

3

74

With the season that the Illini are having, this class could go very far downhill, very fast. Top commit CJ Fiedorowicz is already planning visits to other schools.

#7 Wisconsin, 17 Commits

Name

Position

Rivals

Scout

ESPN

Konrad Zagzebski

LB

5.6

4

76

Frank Tamakloe

S

5.6

3

79

Robbie Havenstein

OL

5.6

3

78

Bryce Gilbert

DT

5.6

3

74

Michael Trotter

S

5.6

3

74

Joseph Brennan

QB

5.5

3

78

Manessah Garner

ATH

5.5

3

78

Marquis Mason

WR

5.5

3

77

Josh Harrison

LB

5.5

3

76

Cody Byers

LB

5.5

3

75

Warren Herring

DE

5.5

3

75

Kyle French

K

5.5

2

78

Jeff Lewis

RB

5.4

3

77

Jake Irwin

DE

5.4

3

NR

Cameron Ontko

LB

5.4

2

78

Dallas Lewallen

OL

NR

2

NR

Jameson Wright

S

NR

NR

77

This is what you expect from a Wisconsin recruiting class. Lots of linemen, very few guys you've heard of until their redshirt sophomore year of college.

#8 Iowa, 19 Commits

Name

Position

Rivals

Scout

ESPN

Andrew Donnal

OL

5.8

4

79

AJ Derby

QB

5.8

3

80

Anthony Ferguson

DT

5.7

3

77

Austin Gray

LB

5.7

3

77

Mike Hardy

DE

5.7

3

76

Brandon Scherff

ATH

5.7

3

76

Jim Poggi

LB

5.7

3

75

James Morris

LB

5.7

3

74

Matt Hoch

DE

5.7

3

NR

Don Shumpert

ATH

5.7

NR

78

Donavon Johnson

DT

5.7

NR

76

Louis Trinca-Pasat

DE

5.6

3

76

Christian Kirksey

ATH

5.6

NR

NR

Stephane Ngoumou

WR

5.6

NR

NR

BJ Lowery

CB

5.6

NR

NR

Marcus Coker

RB

5.5

3

78

Carl Davis

DT

5.5

3

75

DeAndre Johnson

RB

5.5

2

70

Austin Vier

ATH

5.4

2

74

Iowa is upwardly mobile with the season they're having. I think some of their guys are underrated as well.

#9 Minnesota, 21 Commits

Name

Position

Rivals

Scout

ESPN

Jimmy Gjere

OL

5.8

4

78

Lamonte Edwards

ATH

5.8

3

76

Chris Hawkins

WR

5.7

3

78

Tom Parish

QB

5.7

3

73

Josh Allen

OL

5.7

2

77

Marquise Hill

ATH

5.6

3

76

Mark Lenkiewicz

OL

5.6

3

75

Jabari Price

CB

5.6

3

75

Donnell Kirkwood

RB

5.6

2

77

Jonathan Ragoo

OL

5.6

2

75

Kip Smith

K

5.5

3

80

James Manuel

S

5.5

3

78

Antoine Lewis

CB

5.5

3

76

Matt Eggen

OL

5.5

2

76

Willie Tatum

LB

5.5

2

76

Zac Epping

OL

5.5

2

73

Doral Willis

DT

5.4

2

77

Dwayne Mitchell

LB

5.2

2

NR

JD Pride

QB

5.1

NR

71

Allen Veazie

CB

NR

2

75

Josh Tauaefa

DE

NR

NR

72

Minnesota GO FIGHT ROSE BOWL isn't recruiting as well as they had been GOPHERS in the first couple years of the Brewster administration. With a number of soft commits, and the crappy way their season will probably end, things aren't really looking up.

#10 Northwestern, 12 Commits

Name

Position

Rivals

Scout

ESPN

Rashad Lawrence

RB

5.7

3

73

Brandon Vitabile

OL

5.7

3

NR

John Froland

DT

5.7

2

74

Paul Jorgenson

OL

5.6

3

79

Chance Carter

DE

5.6

3

78

Trevor Siemian

QB

5.6

2

79

Will Hampton

DT

5.5

3

77

Shontrelle Johnson

RB

5.5

3

77

Tony Jones

WR

5.5

3

77

Chi Chi Ariguzo

LB

5.5

3

74

Collin Ellis

LB

5.5

2

77

Sean McEvilly

DT

5.5

2

NR

I'm sure they're all very smart guys.

#11 Indiana, 22 Commits

Name

Position

Rivals

Scout

ESPN

Jibreel Black

DE

5.7

4

78

Andre Kates

S

5.7

2

NR

Ishmael Thomas

LB

5.6

3

77

Tim O'Conner

WR

5.6

2

72

Marlandez Harris

OL

5.5

3

72

Logan Young

WR

5.5

2

76

Cameron Cole

CB

5.5

2

75

Matt Perez

RB

5.5

2

74

Pete Bachman

DE

5.5

2

74

Jack Denton

LB

5.4

3

76

Matt Zakrzewski

LB

5.4

3

76

Kofi Hughes

ATH

5.4

3

76

Harrison Scott

DE

5.4

3

69

Ryan Phillis

DE

5.4

2

NR

Shaquille Jefferson

CB

5.4

NR

NR

Leneil Himes

TE

5.3

3

74

Bill Ivan

OL

5.3

3

73

Xavier Whitaker

RB

5.3

3

72

Antonio Banks

RB

5.3

2

73

Cody Evers

OL

NR

2

NR

Drew Hardin

S

NR

NR

NR

Brian Williams

S

NR

NR

NR

The Hoosiers took a big hit when their top commit, DL Jibreel Black, decommitted to Cincinnati earlier this week.

#12 Purdue, 12 Commits

Name

Position

Rivals

Scout

ESPN

Sean Robinson

QB

5.7

3

78

Joe Gilliam

LB

5.6

3

77

Charles Torwudzo

WR

5.6

2

74

De'Ron Flood

TE

5.5

3

74

Jhony Faustin

CB

5.5

3

77

Jeremy Cornelius

WR

5.5

2

76

Isaiah Williams

ATH

5.5

NR

75

Josh Davis

DT

5.4

3

75

Mike Lee

LB

5.4

2

78

Reggie Pegram

RB

5.4

NR

73

Jesse Schmitt

LB

5.2

NR

69

Cody Webster

K

5.2

NR

NR

Will Lucas

LB

NR

3

75

EJ Johnson

S

NR

3

73

Ryan Isaac

DE

NR

3

NR

Purdue is really trying to make its living in Florida under Danny Hope. It didn't do much for them last year, we'll have to wait and see how it turns out.

Not sure how frequently these rankings will be making appearances, so stay tuned.

I think when it's all said and done we'll end up higher (we'll probably pick up some guys in the secondary that are definitely higher than the ones they picked up), but there's no doubt we'd love to have Gholston (who realistically we had no shot at) and Bullough (which was good work by MSU's staff).

This probably isn't going to look like what we think of as a Michigan-level class, but we knew this was coming after 3-9. Playing better this season and showing improvement should help us close on some of the guys remaining, but the damage was done.

His grandfather on his mother's side along with a couple of his uncles played for ND, while basically all of his father's side played for MSU. One of his uncles is also the defensive coordinator at UCLA.

One thing to remember is that MSU is probably not on the radar of too many other high-end recruits. So while UM may nab another top guy like Cullen, MSU is going to probably bring in a couple more 3*-types. That doesn't mean they are bad players, the the numbers should fill out to where their class looks like it has in years before (high 20's-mid 30's).

Rivals ranks players by their Recruiting Rankings. Most 2*s appear to be around a RR=5.2, while many of the top 5*s appear around RR=6.0. Players who aren't rated on Rivals don't have a RR value, so Tim set them as RR=5.0, which seems just.

That said, I don't understand how Rivals come up with the RR scores. I don't really follow recruiting that much.

I don't think there is an rhyme or reason to the numbers other than to differentiate within the same star level. So a 5.7 is just a high 3* and 5.5 is a low 3*, likewise a 5.8 is a low 4* and so on. It helps them rank the players outside the top 250 by position and by state.

There may be something more scientific to it than that but that's always been my understanding.

Yeah, that seems to be what I'm seeing in my limited time with recruiting related stuffs. I might read one or two FNL post a season, check these conference comparisons, and then pack it in until signing day. Keeping up with the desires of players I may never see just doesn't interest me that much.

You mention that you've done this before, for past seasons. Do you have a url you could post? It'd be really helpful to look at how previous classes with more or less gaudy ratings have fared around the B10.

With Marvin Robinson and Jerald Robinson slated to join the team next year, Denard , Terrance and Coach Greg already on board...four underclassmen and a coordinator named Robinson...how on earth did the staff let Purdue swoop in and steal Sean Robinson from us?

I understand our recruiting suffering this year after 3-9, but what I don't understand is this: why would we or another team suffer the year after a terrible season? We didn't we suffer last year during the bad year? I don't get it. We pulled in guys that were top rated right after our bad year, in November/December of last year when the season was over and the terrible year was fresh in recruits minds. Why would that be the case but then recruiting suffers this year, when its clear we are improving and will likely go to some sort of bowl? It seems like the reverse should be true.

If I was a HS senior last year and seeing a new coach stumble to 3-9, I'd have a much more difficult time staying on track or newly considering us. As a junior last year I would think "lets see what they do next year." So this still seems strange.

Nice to see all this. I realize the whole thing is there in order to show quantity and quality, but it would be great to have an additional column that shows where the recruits are from. I know where most of our guys come from... but it'd be interesting to see that info for other schools. Yeah, I could look it up my damn self, but I am entirely too lazy for that.

Iowa really does focus on defensive recruiting, and Penn St. is piling on some offense.

Deducting for athletes, who may have been recruited for either side of the ball, specialists, and ignoring position changes for the time being, the rough breakdown of offensive and defensive recruiting thus far is as follows:

Some of the stats are a bit skewed by incomplete classes (notably Purdue), but Iowa and Penn St. are both relatively full at 19 and 20, respectively.

It may very well be that the four athletes already committed to Iowa will wind up on offense, and that Iowa is anticipating losing some of its veteran defenders to the NFL, but somehow I am not surprised by a lopsided defensive class for Kirk Ferentz's Hawkeyes.

I tend to believe (baselessly) that there is some correlation between early recruiting numbers and the focus a coaching staff gives to a particular side of the ball (almost certainly over a long period of time, less true in any given year). I would not be surprised if all but one in the remainder of U of M's class is a defensive player. As it stands today, however, Michigan has initially targeted offensive players at an approximate ratio of 60%/40% (higher, assuming Dileo is utilized at slot) despite the already young and relatively deep offensive talent. The early emphasis on offensive recruiting is consistent with what I've come to expect from this coaching staff's offensive prowess.

At any rate, I expect Iowa to retain a staunch defense for a few more years and Penn St. to continue its recent trend of offensive firepower. Thoughts?

While Penn St may be taking more offense overall I would say that they take very highly rated defensive players. I would like to see us shift more towards this line of thinking. Take a few big time playmakers on defense and take as many guys on the offensive side that fit the system. This way even if a big rb recruit don't pan out we have a few more to choose from. Seeing how we spread out the touches to many people we need more good players on 'O' but we could use more great players on 'D'. We just need to get better at picking out the talent on the defensive side of the ball.

i was looking at who we could snake oil from illinois if/when the zooker gets canned and it looks like we'd only want CJ Fiedorowicz. is that right? seems like we took a pass on easterly though if signing day is approaching and the zooker is gone and we haven't filled that spot, we may want to look at him again.

Looking at the list, I'm wondering if maybe Avery will get a little bit of a bump once he stops being evaluated as a QB option? Everything I've read makes him sound like an underrated CB, but it seems like he is still being viewed as a mediocre QB as well. Just wondering.

A few days ago I looked at the recruiting classes for both Iowa and Wisconsin over the last several years as reported by Rivals. What I find most interesting is that both schools recruit poorly compared to Michigan, at least based on the number of stars and final ranking, yet somehow both Iowa and Michigan field very competitive teams. I also looked at Both Boise State and Cincinnati and their recruiting, which is even worse than Iowa or Wisconsin. Needless to say, if Michigan, even in a bad year, had incoming classes like any of the four schools I mentioned, the sky would most certainly be falling and we would wonder what we did to anger the Gods.

One thing that is common to Iowa, Wisc, Cinci and Boise State is that there is relative constancy in their coaches and/or schemes. Michigan, on the other hand, has had three new defensive schemes in the last three years and a major modification to its offense since RichRod replaced Carr.

In my mind, this raises some interesting questions. Obviously, great coaching and great talent makes for national championships or top five rankings. USC and Florida would be good examples. What the data suggests is that good coaching and solid O and D schemes which have been in place for several years can largely make up for less than stellar talent. Maybe we are looking into recruiting class numbers a bit too much.

I just need to know that Michigan lost because PSU was better, not because UM was in a funk. Beating Illinois would tell me something about this year's Michgan team. I don't like not knowing what to expect from Michigan. I know this team is really young, they are really talent too. I'm tired of "Guess who is coming to the game?" situations.

I'll be glad when Michigan steps on the field and causes the other team to melt like butter on the sidelines. I hate the rebuilding process! Hurry up and mature Michigan. Go Blue!